Woman paralyzed while sledding gets $8M

WATERBURY (AP) -- A Connecticut woman paralyzed in a sledding accident in Waterbury in 2007 has received an $8 million settlement from the city.

Rose Marie Deschesnes, now 24, crashed into a metal bench at the bottom of a hill near a ball field while snow tubing at Fulton Park. She suffered a spinal cord injury that left her a quadriplegic.

She filed a lawsuit last year alleging the city should never have put a bench at the base of such a popular sledding spot and failed to take safety precautions.

Deschesnes' lawyer says the settlement money will be put into a trust to pay for her medical and living expenses for the rest of her life. An aide to the mayor says he believes the bench has been removed.